Embossed Film
Many successful commercial Microcreped products have resulted when characteristics of the incoming substrate were also optimized for Microcreping. Optimization may initially seem daunting; however, often very small changes (“de-tuning”) reduce both the incoming substrate cost and the processing costs.
A seemingly insignificant variation in the base web can potentially have a huge impact on how the material processes on the Micrex/Microcreper. While indeed The Micrex Process is complex, because it is mechanical, when carried out properly with the same inputs, the resulting creped product will be the same from run to run. Unexplained variations in the creped product can often be traced to a variation in the base material that existed before creping and which went unidentified by the customer.
Two techniques illustrate how this can work:
- “Sandwich” a substance that normally would be beyond the scope of Micrex technology between two layers of material that will process; the result: successful processing. This composite structure is a simple way to solve a complex problem.
- Use an existing process, such as embossing or wet creping, to change the physical properties of a sheet. In these cases, the coeffficent of friction is altered and the density is increased — both characteristics that enhance Microcreping.
Our best thinking on this topic is available in the following Technical Note.
